Place Your Bets!
by Vykktor
Summary: A wrestling match between Vaike and Sully breaks out, so the shepherds start placing bets. "Make with the headlocking!" shouted Gregor. " Ha ha, Gregor has seventy gold on the burly one!" ..."Who is betting?" "I'll take you up on that." Robin walked up to Gregor and sat the two of them down next to Kellam. "I'll even go ten more and say that Vaike is going to win."


**Hello everyone, this is a oneshot that just decided to make its way into my mind during my third playthrough of Fire Emblem Awakening, so I decided to write it down and share it with y'all. Enjoy!**

Kellam sat down on a bench and stared at Chrom, who was telling a joke to Sully and Vaike. When the young prince finished, Vaike guffawed, playfully punched Sully in the arm, She responded back with a punch of her own that knocked him off balance. Chrom burst into laughter as Sully continued her assault on Vaike, tackling him to the ground and pinning him. To the side, Ricken and Gregor stopped their conversation to watch the two shepherds duke it out on the floor of the barracks.

"Make with the headlocking!" shouted Gregor. " Ha ha, Gregor has seventy gold on the burly one!" He held a small pouch of gold coins high into the air. "Who is betting?"

"I'll take you up on that." Robin walked up to Gregor and sat the two of them down next to Kellam. "I'll even go ten more and say that Vaike is going to win," he said, smirking as he placed his own money on the table. Kellam rolled his eyes.

"Just because I'm wrestling doesn't mean I don't have ears! I'll knock you one good, too, Robin! Right after I'm done with the old street rat here!" Sully yelled. The room erupted in laughter and Sully grinned, tightening her grip on Vaike.

"Who're you calling street rat?"

"You, you street rat!"

"Teach ain't no street rat!" Vaike flipped Sully off of his body, sending her sprawling, and then dove at her in a wild tackle.

"Oof!"

Meanwhile, Gaius was making his way to the table. The candy loving thief stared at the money on the table, his eyes glittering. "This looks sweet enough. I'll throw in sixty for…" he looked over to the two combatants. Vaike had Sully's right arm pinned to the floor with his left hand while his right was on the back of Sully's neck in a tight head-wrestling match. Sully's left hand was on Vaike's right elbow, straining to break his grip and release her head.

"You'd be wasting your cash on anybody but me, Chuckles!" Sully shouted. The female shepherd popped her opponent's arm from her neck and wrenched her hand away, leaving the two of them at a neutral stance. Despite the fact that they had only been wrestling for about a minute, the two combatants were already breathing hard.

"Alright, fine, but you're buying me a pie next time we go into town!" Gaius called out, dropping his bag of coins on the table.

"As long as there's more money in my pot!" The cavalier feigned left, and then, quick as an arrow, she dove for Vaike's right leg, wrapping him up in a single-leg takedown. Vaike sprawled outwards, though, kicking his leg free and landing his massive upper body on top of Sully's lighter frame. Sully, however, was not shaken by this, instead bending at the waist like a reed, causing Vaike to glance off her back and hit the floor.

Gregor barked his approval, laughing heartily. "That is making good techniques and countering! I am gladdened by my picking the burly one!"

"It goes street rat, Robin, then you, Gregor!"

The ring of people around Vaike and Sully all laughed again, this time attracting the attention of the two Pegasus knights in the company, Sumia and Cordelia. The two of them watched curiously as the two muscle-bound shepherds grappled with each other, trying to gain the upper hand. Cordelia smiled slightly and peered at the wages on the table, then back at the combatants.

"I'll throw in seventy for Vaike, I guess," she said, taking a small bag from her belt. She set the coins down on the table and looked to her friend Sumia, who was alternating glances between the fighters, the table, and Chrom. "Sumia, do you want to take a side?" Her fellow rider looked up at her for a moment, hesitating.

"I… I don't think so," she said quietly before making a move to cross the room and stand next to Chrom. She shuffled over to him quickly, playing with her hair and blushing. Right as she was almost next to the prince, though, Sully flipped Vaike around after he tried a sloppy tackle, sending him careening into Sumia. The Pegasus knight teetered, and eventually lost her footing, sending her crashing down into the young, Ylessian prince. Chrom braced himself, ready to catch Sumia, but before he could, another hand shot out and saved her from the fall.

"Ah, my dear lady, how unfortunate it is that you have been the victim of such calamity! Luckily for you, when I saw your illustrious and feminine figure taken so rudely off your feet, I valiantly sprang into action to rescue you! A disaster has been turned bright this day!"

Virion announced pompously, tossing his sleek, teal hair. Chrom, along with most of those within auditory distance of the archer from Rosanne, rolled their eyes. Sumia, her face even redder than before, muttered a shy thank you and wrestled her hand from his grip. This rejection went unnoticed, however, as the aristocrat had already focused his attention on the fight that was still going on between Vaike and Sully. The latter had her opponent in a headlock now, which he was having difficulty escaping from.

"Ah, what elegant power milady displays in this intense duel!" he cooed, beckoning to Sully. "Your body is a tapestry of muscular artistry! I -"

"Drop dead, Ruffles!" Sully barked as she whipped Vaike to the ground, causing the grandiose noble to jump back and crash into Chrom and Sumia, making them all fall to the ground in an all-together undignified royal pile. Virion leapt up, his primped attire askew, and immediately rushed to the Ylessian prince and the unbalanced Pegasus rider's aid, hastily apologizing.

"I am incredibly sorry, Prince Chrom," he said, backing up as he pulled the dazed prince to his feet. His powdered cheeks were red with embarrassment. "Please be assured that I had no intention of – UAHHHHHH!" In his haste to bring Chrom and Sumia up from the floor, Virion failed to notice the table behind him. The back of his leg caught on the low-sitting bench, causing him topple backwards onto the table, this time startling the two maidens sitting there, Lissa and Maribelle. The two were having tea and discussing techniques on how to get Lissa act more ladylike, so it was an ironic moment indeed when Maribelle, so startled by Virion's sudden entrance, threw her teacup into the air and fell off the bench in surprise. This caused the entire room to erupt in laughter once again, even louder than before.

"I never said take out the whole company!" Sully shouted at the flamboyant archer. She turned her attention back to her opponent. Vaike's waist was clenched tightly between her legs in a relentless scissors grip. "You wanna give up yet?" Vaike wriggled fiercely, trying his hardest to break the cavalier's grip. He wiped the sweat from his face and tried to jam his hand between her legs and loosen her grip, but it was like trying to wrestle his way out of a wyvern's claws.

"Ol' Teach…" he struggled, "Ow! Ol' Teach ain't done yet!"

"Oh yeah?" Sully squeezed harder, and Vaike let out a gasp.

"Gah! Alright, alright, you win! Uncle!" Vaike yelled, defeated. Sully smirked triumphantly and let Vaike roll away. His chest expanded as he heavily breathed in and out, lying on the floor. Gregor, Gaius, and Virion all cheered and started dividing up their winnings.

Cordelia's shoulders slumped as she watched the money get distributed. "Well, I guess that's that, then," she said as she pushed aside a strand of red hair, her voice resigned in defeat. Robin, however, was watching the money closely, his brow furrowed like he was trying to properly distribute troops around a battlefield.

"That isn't right, there's way too much money on the table. Wasn't there just the five of us?" The tactician gestured to the shepherds around the table, who all nodded. "Well then where's this extra money from?" he asked, looking around for the mysterious benefactor. Kellam cleared his throat and touched Robin's shoulder, making him jump out of his seat. "In Naga's name, Kellam! ...Apologies, Libra." The war monk had raised a suspicious eyebrow at the tactician's remark, but was now smiling and waving a hand dismissively, showing that everything was fine. Robin turned his attention back to Kellam. "Who did you bet on, Kellam?" The large knight pointed to Sully.

"I threw in eighty gold coins for Sully. I told you I would match you as soon as you set your own money down, but I guess you didn't notice."

"Sorry, Kellam," Robin muttered noncommittally, his attention already back on the coins on the table. "Then who put the last of these coins in? We've still got eighty extra."

"That was me." Chills ran down Robin's spine as Tharja's low voice made her presence known for the first time. "I put in eighty coins for Vaike, just like you, Robin. We even carry our money in the same pouch," she said, shoving her bag of coins in his face. True to her words, Tharja's bag was identical to the tactician's; all the way down to the most finite leather engravings.

"That's… flattering… Tharja," he said, avoiding her unwavering gaze for fear of being hexed through eye contact. "Umm, thank you?" he said awkwardly, trying to inch away from the Plegian dark mage. Her dark eyes fixated on him, she closed the gap whenever he moved. Robin turned his head to Chrom who was standing next to him, supporting Sumia. He threw the prince a look that said, "Help me!"

Chrom smiled. "How does an evening at the Southtown taverns sound to everyone?" he asked loudly. The barracks roared its approval.

"Okay Chuckles, looks like I know where that money of yours you just won is going!" Sully barked at Gaius, who lowered an eyebrow at her and threw on a lopsided smile.

"Why don't you have the guy whose arse you just kicked buy you a drink?" he asked, sticking a lollipop into his mouth. "I was looking for a pie, anyway!" Sully looked over to Vaike, who was standing how, rubbing his ribs.

"Yeah, that's right!" She clapped her muscle-bound comrade on the back. "C'mon Teach, you're buying me a drink!"

Chrom chuckled. "Alright then, let's go. Come on, everyone!" The shepherds cheered once more, filed out of their barracks, and started on their way to Southtown. Kellam trudged behind them, panting in his heavy armor.

"Hey guys, hold on a second! I still need my share!"


End file.
